


The Right Choice

by Jacie



Category: NCIS
Genre: Alternate Reality, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Character Death, Revenge, Shooting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:13:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27330097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jacie/pseuds/Jacie
Summary: After Tony killed Michael Rivkin, Ziva held a grudge. In Israel, she forced Gibbs to choose between her and Tony. Gibbs said good-bye to Ziva. Months later, the team found out she had been captured and was being held in Somalia. Tony volunteered himself and Tim to find and rescue her. Back in DC, Ziva insists she can work with Tony and that she wants back on Gibbs’ team. Gibbs leaves it up to Tony who says he is fine with it. Apparently, Ziva has forgiven him for Rivkin’s death. Or has she?
Relationships: Anthony DiNozzo/Jethro Gibbs
Comments: 8
Kudos: 165





	The Right Choice

**Author's Note:**

  * For [rose_malmaison](https://archiveofourown.org/users/rose_malmaison/gifts).



> Spoilers:  
> Set in S7 after Ziva is rescued from Somalia.  
> Warnings:  
> Violence in line with series, minor character death.
> 
> Notes:  
> Back in 2019, I did not claim artwork from the NCIS Reverse Bang because I was working some overtime, and was dealing with a family crisis. One of my favorite pieces went unclaimed, so I started writing a story for it, deciding I would claim it if I was able to complete the story. It took me over a year and a half to finish the story, but Rose_Malmaison was kind enough to agree to allow me to use the artwork that inspired this story.
> 
> Disclaimer:  
> Not true, I made it all up, no harm intended, etc. This story is not intended to depict realistic scenarios and was written for entertainment purposes only.
> 
> © 2020 by Jacie

_Set in the time frame of Season 7, after Tony and Tim rescue Ziva in Somalia._

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Lying in bed, Gibbs stared up at the ceiling. “She wants back.”

Tony sleepily yawned and rolled over to cuddle up against Gibbs’ shoulder. “It’s up to you.”

Gibbs jostled Tony, trying to wake him fully. “She pulled a gun on you. She wanted me to choose between you and her.”

With a chuckle, Tony wrapped his arm across Gibbs’ waist and gave him a squeeze. “She should have known better. Like you would have ever picked her over me. How could she even have thought you’d choose her over me? Ridiculous!”

“There was only one choice I could make.”

Leaning up on an elbow, Tony looked Gibbs in the eye. “You could have let me go. Vance would have given me my own team to lead. Eventually. I think.”

“I need you. I do. We’re a team.”

“With Tim and sometimes Ziva.”

“We’re the team. They’re junior partners.”

“I wouldn’t say that to them,” said Tony.

“I wasn’t planning on it. Vance will only bring her back if I’ll take her on my team. She’s volatile. No one else wants to deal with her. Do you?”

“I will if you will.”

Gibbs ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t want to bring her back if it’s going to cause problems.”

“You do remember that Tim and I risked our lives to rescue her in Somalia? Right?”

A look of concern flowed over Gibbs’ features. “Still not sure why you volunteered to do that.”

Tony smiled as he rubbed his fingertips through Gibbs’ chest hair. “Maybe it’s because I wanted to see you in a ghillie suit. Your timing was impeccable.” 

“You are one of a kind, DiNozzo.”

“Actually, there are two Anthony DiNozzos. Dad, he’s out there somewhere.”

“But you keep your distance. Why?”

“You were you estranged from your father for years. It’s not easy. My dad is a slick-talking conman; nothing but trouble.”

“You didn’t even let him know when you had the plague. Did you ever tell him?”

Shaking his head, Tony revealed, “No. I didn’t want him around. I didn’t have the strength to deal with him. The team feels more like family than he does. He used to ship me off to boarding schools all the time. Anyway, we were talking about Ziva, not Senior.”

“If we take her back, you need to tell me if she ever threatens you again.”

“I had killed Rivkin. He didn’t give me a choice.”

“You had to choose between you and him. You made the right choice.”

“So did you, in Israel.”

“I can tell Vance we don’t want her. You killed Rivkin in self-defense. His own actions are the reason he’s dead. You are not to blame. If she can’t get over that, I’m not sure she can work with you.”

“Talk to her, okay? If you feel it’s going to tear the team up, then there is no reason to take her back. If you think we can work together, I don’t have an issue with it.”

Leaning close, Gibbs dropped a kiss on Tony’s forehead. “I won’t tolerate her disrespecting or threatening you. Understood?”

“I know you have my six.”

“Always, Skippy.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

The next day, Gibbs arranged a meeting with Ziva and Vance in the director’s office. “DiNozzo is my senior field agent. If you disrespect him even once, I will cut you off my team immediately. Understand?” he said sternly.

Ziva’s eyes turned away as she considered her options, then she looked back. “Yes, I can work with him,” she said curtly.

“Just so there isn’t any confusion,” Vance began, “if you’re off Gibbs’ team, you are out of NCIS. Are you sure this is the road you want to travel? Does your father support your decision?”

“It is my life to live, not his. This is where I want to be. I cannot go back to Mossad.”

“If you’re out of Mossad, you can’t remain here as a liaison officer.”

“I have decided to become an American citizen.”

Gibbs nodded to Vance. “Okay, work it out,” he said just before leaving the office.

Down in the bullpen, Tony and Tim looked up to Gibbs questioningly. As he took a seat, he informed them, “Ziva will be tied up with Vance and HR for the rest of the day. If you two need something to do, we still have a load of cold cases to go through.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Ziva quickly adjusted back to working with the team. Cases came and went, most were solved, while a few were added to the cold case files to be revisited at a later date. Gibbs kept a close eye on Ziva the first month she was back, then relaxed. Sitting at his desk, he glanced around, watching his team at work. They were a family and they were back together again, humming like a well-oiled machine.

On his time off, Gibbs preferred to cook his steaks over the open flame of his fireplace, and Tony appreciated the results. Eating in the living room, seated on the couch and watching television, took Tony back to his college days. The pair always tapped their bottles of beer together. At first, they always had a reason to toast, but eventually, they did it just out of habit. Tony enjoyed mimicking Gibbs to the point where they almost moved in sync as they cut and ate their steaks and reached for their beer at nearly the same time.

“How are things going with Ziva?” Gibbs asked between bites.

Tony shrugged, even though Gibbs’ eyes were focused on the television. “Good. I guess she’s forgotten about the Rivkin thing.”

“Are you sure?”

“She hasn’t mentioned it. She hasn’t thrown me to the ground and shoved a gun in my face or chest lately. That’s a plus. Do you have any reason to think she’s holding back?”

“I don’t know. It seems odd that she was so angry in Israel, pulling a gun on you like that, and now it’s suddenly all forgotten?”

“Maybe she appreciates that we rescued her from Saleem. Maybe she’s gotten over it. She did kill Ari, and he was her own brother.”

“Half-brother,” Gibbs corrected. “She usually has an agenda. She killed Ari to earn my trust. I’m just not sure what is on her mind this time.”

Tony cut another slice of his steak and stabbed with his fork. “It could be that she’s changing. Would it be so surprising that she prefers investigative work in DC to chasing down bad guys in Somalia? Maybe Saleem broke something in her; changed her thinking.”

“She passed her psych eval.”

“Yeah, she did. She’s back on the team like nothing ever happened.”

“You and Tim missed her.”

“Not everyone is a good fit on the team. She fits.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

_One month later_

Following up on a promising lead, the team arrived in the warehouse district.

After parking the car, Gibbs directed his team. “Ziva, McGee, take the front. DiNozzo and I will approach from the alleyway.”

The team nodded as they moved into their positions. Ziva and McGee walked toward the front of the building as Gibbs and Tony went around the back, into the alleyway. 

“Boss, squad car,” said Tony, seeing the vehicle several yards away. 

Gibbs kept his voice low. “See why they’re here. If they have no business here tell them to get the hell out of sight before they blow this for us.”

“On it,” Tony said as he holstered his weapon and walked toward the other end of the alley. 

Gibbs waited near the building, checking out their options for entry. There were multiple doors, some looking more secure than others. After sizing up the rear of the building, he glanced down the alley, checking on Tony’s progress. Something seemed wrong. He could tell Tony was hesitating. 

When their eyes met, he could see that Tony was turning toward him, waving him back as a warning of danger. An instant later, the squad car exploded. 

“Tony!” Gibbs yelled, more concerned with his agent than the building they were about to force their way into. Speaking into his mic, he yelled as he ran, “Ziva, McGee, get an ambulance here. Now!”

Tim answered quickly, “What happened, Boss? I heard the explosion. Are you okay?”

“Tony’s down. Watch the damn building and grab anyone trying to leave.”

At the far end of the alleyway, he found Tony down and unconscious. Heaving him over his shoulder, Gibbs carried him several yards away from the burning car and set him down gently. Softly slapping Tony’s cheeks, Gibbs tried to rouse him. A couple of minutes later, he heard sirens approaching. 

“Hang on, Tony. Help is on the way,” he said, as he gripped Tony’s hand in his own.

A pair of squad cars showed up first, followed by the ambulance, then a firetruck. The EMTs ran over to Gibbs’ side, asking what happened as they began assessing Tony’s condition.

“The car exploded and he went down,” Gibbs explained simply. 

“Are you okay? We can get another medical team here in a few minutes.”

“I was at the other end of the alleyway when the car exploded. I’m fine. He’s the one who needs medical attention.”

One of the EMTs motioned for Gibbs to back away and give them room to work, then used an ammonia inhalant to bring Tony back to a conscious state. Tony’s hand went to his forehead, which was bleeding from a bad scrape. “We’re here to help you,” said the EMT. “What do you remember?”

One of the police officers stood nearby with his notepad handy, waiting for Tony to speak.

“I was going down to talk to the cops, but something was wrong.”

“It’s a fake,” said the cop.

Gibbs eyed the man. “What’s a fake?”

The officer motioned to the burning car. “It’s not one of ours. It’s a fake.”

Tony struggled to sit up, and looked over at the burning car as the firefighters worked to put the flames out. “I could tell it was wrong. It smelled like gasoline. The thing was doused. And the driver was a mannequin. When I got close, I could tell it wasn’t a real squad car at all. I smelled the gasoline and started running.”

Gibbs patted his shoulder, “You didn’t get very far. How’s your head feeling?”

Tony tried again to reach up to his forehead only to have the EMT brush his hand away. “It feels like I hit a brick wall.”

“Or the pavement?”

Ziva and McGee came through the building and eyed the scene. “There was no one inside,” offered Ziva. “They must have been tipped off.”

“Or the whole thing was a fake tip,” said Gibbs as he eyed the burning car again. “This was a setup. They wanted us here, and they were trying to take us out.” 

“How would they know we’d come back here?” asked Tim. 

“Protocol. All entrances covered. They knew we’d be back here and would investigate the squad car.”

“But they only got Tony?”

“I was checking out the doors and sent him to talk to the cops.”

“That’s a good thing. How bad is it?”

Tossing the keys to Tim, he said, “I’ll go to the hospital with Tony. Whenever they get the fire out, we’re taking custody of the vehicle. I want you two to stay here until we can tow it, then have Abby scour it from top to bottom and find out why it exploded.” 

“Bad timing?” offered Tim.

“I’m thinking car bomb,” replied Gibbs.

As the EMTs settled Tony onto a gurney, Ziva rolled her eyes. “It is barely a scratch. Why are they making such a big deal out of it?”

Gibbs dismissed her comment as he called Ducky, asking him to meet them at the hospital.

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Ducky arrived shortly after the ambulance. They waited for hours while tests were run, and Tony was properly bandaged up. At least they were allowed to be in the exam room with Tony. Eventually, the doctor returned and advised that Tony could go home, but should take it easy for a couple of days.

“I can prescribe a pain killer if you would like, but Tylenol may do the trick.”

Tony felt the bandage on his forehead and asked, “Is this going to leave a scar? I might have to start wearing bangs again.”

“You’re going to be fine,” insisted Gibbs. It was more of an order than encouragement. “Let’s get out of here.”

They were surprised to see that Ducky had driven the autopsy van, until he explained, “I only have room for one passenger in the Morgan.”

Gibbs had Ducky return them to the Navy Yard so he could pick up his truck. Then they stopped off at the diner before returning to the house.

“We’re taking two days off. I want you to rest up.”

Tony looked longingly up the staircase. “You’ll get no argument from me.”

“Have a seat on the couch. I’ll bring you some Tylenol.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

_Two months later_

While Tony had taken the time off that Gibbs told him too, he felt it was unwarranted. Sure, he’d slowed down a little bit after the explosion and did need some time to heal, and get his hearing back. But mostly, he’d felt okay. Once he was back at the office, Vance put him on desk duty for another two weeks, but the time went by quickly.

At night, Gibbs held him gently, tenderly even, leaving soft kisses along his body, careful of his wounds. It was a side of his lover that he didn’t see often. If Tony mentioned having a headache when they were sitting on the sofa, Gibbs would massage his temples until he felt better. 

However, it was good to be back to work and even better when he was cleared to go back in the field. For the first month, Gibbs had been overly protective of Tony again, rarely leaving his side and keeping a sharp look out for anything that appeared the slightest bit suspicious. And then he would send Ziva or McGee to check things out, always keeping Tony safely at his side. 

By the second month after Tony’s return to work, Gibbs relaxed a little bit, allowing Tony to be teamed up with Ziva or McGee from time to time. Although most of the time, Gibbs wanted Tony in his sight, especially if he sensed any danger.

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Gibbs had Tony with him the day they went to interview a Marine colonel. When they’d called the man’s office, they were told he was at the golf course teeing off. They could catch him there, or wait until he returned to the office.

Gibbs grumbled about their investigation being more important than a damn golf game and nodded for Tony to accompany him. When they left the office, Ziva was reviewing a file at her desk and Tim was catching up with Abby in her lab.

It was a beautiful, sunny day. As per club rules, they left the sedan in the parking lot. Gibbs turned down the offer to use a golf cart and insisted they’d be fine walking the course. He’d reviewed the map of the grounds at the clubhouse and had an idea of where they might catch up with the colonel based on the man’s tee time. 

It took the pair several minutes to locate the colonel at the ninth hole. Colonel Strickland and his aide, along with two senators were a bit miffed that the two NCIS agents pulled them off the course for a lengthy discussion. But Gibbs had been adamant. “We can do this here and now, or we can take you back to NCIS headquarters right now and question you there. Your choice.”

The colonel grudgingly agreed to be interviewed where they were. The rest of his party waited with their golf cart while Tony and Gibbs questioned Colonel Strickland and took copious notes. Once Gibbs was satisfied, they said good-bye to the colonel and began walking back to the clubhouse. 

“Do you think he’s involved?” asked Tony. 

“Not sure yet,” Gibbs replied. “Something isn’t adding up,” he added as he glanced through the notes he carried. 

By the time they’d reached the seventh hole, Gibbs had tucked his notes away. It was a beautiful day to walk. Then his gut twisted. Tony was jabbering about something not work-related, totally unconcerned, but Gibbs’ senses were suddenly on fire, making him feel uncomfortable out in the open. 

He saw it just in time; a bright flash, the reflection from a sniper scope. In an instant he lunged at Tony, taking him down to the ground fast. He rolled them into a sand trap for shelter, and then reached for his phone. 

He cursed when Ziva failed to answer, then called McGee, ordering the younger agent to notify Vance that they had an active sniper shooting at the golf club and back up was needed immediately. And where the hell was Ziva?

“I think she went out for lunch,” said Tim. “I’ll try calling her again to meet us out there.”

Despite a large group of law enforcement officers descending on the property, all searching every tree and bush for signs of a sniper nothing was found even after hours spent looking around. 

Gibbs was steamed when someone suggested it was a figment of his imagination. They continued scouring the area until DiNozzo found a bullet hole. Gibbs had the team dig up a section of the golf course until they found the bullet. He was totally unapologetic to the groundskeeper who complained about the damage. 

“Someone tried to kill us and you’re worried about a little torn up grass?” he shouted sternly. Turning back to his team, he said, “Get that to Abby.”

Ziva grabbed the evidence bag. “I will take it.” 

“Why didn’t you answer the phone when I called?” Gibbs asked. 

“Sorry, Gibbs. I was ordering lunch and it was loud in the restaurant. I did not hear my phone until I was outside and McGee called. The restaurant must have bad reflection.”

“Reception,” Tony auto-corrected her. 

“Whatever. I will make sure this gets to Abby,” she said as she turned and walked away.

“What do you think, Boss?”

“I think someone is trying to kill us again.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Gibbs was still on edge when Tony’s father arrived in town while they were working protective detail for Prince Sayif ibn Alwaan. The Prince’s car and driver had been blown up by a car bomb and the team had been assigned to protect the Prince while they investigated the explosion, and attempted to determine who had tried to kill him. The Prince seemed indifferent to his driver’s death and dismissed murder attempts as a part of his life, something he had little concern about.

The team rotated shifts with another team, while the Saudi Embassy had sent several guards to ensure the Prince’s safety. Gibbs questioned why DiNozzo Senior decided to show up right then and Tony just explained how there was a mix-up in their bank accounts. 

“I don’t know why he decided to come down in person,” Tony said. “I was trying to get some money from my trust to finance that cruise I’m taking in the spring with my frat brothers. Somehow, the bank is showing my father as the trustee instead of me. It should be me. Apparently, there was a typo that mixed up Jr and Sr.”

“He couldn’t do that over the phone?”

Tony nodded. “My thoughts exactly.”

When they found out Senior was staying at the Adam’s House hotel, Gibbs gave Tony a stern warning to keep Senior out of the way of the team and the Prince. The elder DiNozzo gave off bad vibes to Gibbs. He sensed the man had some ulterior motive for seeing Tony in person and it was putting his gut into spasms. Tony seemed annoyed but unconcerned about his father’s sudden unannounced appearance. Still, he did agree there was likely some devious underlying reason for the visit. 

“He wants to have dinner,” Tony offered. “To catch up. We haven’t seen each other in person for a couple of years.”

Gibbs only glared at Tony in response for a minute. He didn’t like it, but he couldn’t order Senior away, or for Tony to avoid him. “Just keep him away from the Alwaans.”

“I’m having enough trouble keeping him away from Ziva,” Tony scoffed.

“Just do it, DiNozzo.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

The following day, Gibbs was talking to Abby about the car bomb and explosion when he received a call from Tim.

“I’m up in MTAC, Boss. NSA has some intel,” Tim said.

“Right, McGee. Be right there.”

Minutes later, Gibbs joined Tim and Vance for a briefing from Barry Kester of NSA. They were informed that some email transmissions had been intercepted that mentioned the keywords Prince Omar, contract, assassination, and killing. It had been determined the correspondence was coming from the DC metropolitan area. Within minutes, the NSA technicians had traced the transmission to the guest business center of Adam’s House Hotel. 

“That’s where we’re keeping Prince Sayif,” said Vance. Before he had even turned around, Gibbs was on the phone to Tony relaying the information to him. 

“Get down to the business center and apprehend whoever is down there. Nobody leaves. Understand?”

_“We’re on it, Boss.”_

“We?”

_“Ziva just showed up to relieve me.”_

“Tim and I are on our way.”

Within minutes, Gibbs’ pulled up to the hotel. Looking around, he noticed several squad cars and two ambulances all with their lights flashing. With Tim at his side, he flashed his badge and was allowed to pass into the lobby. He tried Tony’s phone, but there was no answer. Trying to call Ziva’s cell had the same results. 

Flashing his badge again, he asked what had happened. The officers he spoke to said there was a shooting that left one dead and another person in serious condition. The detectives had crime scene techs working the scene, which was the guest business center. 

Gibbs waved for Tim to follow him and ran through the lobby and down the hallway, going where the signs pointed. His heart was racing when they arrived at the guest business center and he flashed his badge yet again. “Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS. I have agents in this hotel protecting Prince Sayif ibn Alwaan. They’re not answering their cell phones. Were they involved? Are they in there?”

One of the detectives nodded off to the side. “We’re investigating the scene. The prince was not involved. We are questioning a female witness who says the two men fired at each other, both men were hit. One is injured, the other is a fatality.” 

“Anthony DiNozzo?”

The detective raised his eyebrows. “Which one? We pulled their IDs. Apparently, the men involved were Anthony DiNozzo Senior and Junior. According to the woman, the older man fired first, and the younger man shot back.”

“You said one man is dead? Who? Who is dead?”

“The older man.”

“I need to see Tony. Now! Tim, find Ziva, get her back to the Navy Yard.”

“Yes, Boss.”

Before another word was spoken, Gibbs pushed his way into the room and saw the EMTs busy working in the corner. Despite their attempt to push him back, he knelt beside Tony and grasped his hand. “Hang in there, DiNozzo. I’m here. I am with you. You will not die. Not on my watch.” 

A few feet away, he saw where Senior had been shot and fell to the floor. He could tell there were two bullet wounds, one to Senior’s heart and one to the head. His gut told him it was wrong. Tony was trained to shoot with a double-tap. There should be two wounds together in close proximity. 

Turning back to the detective, he asked, “Who was your witness?”

Flipping open his notepad, he replied, “Ziva David. She said she’s with NCIS. My partner is questioning her in a conference room.”

One of the EMTs looked up suddenly. “We have to take him to the hospital now. He’s critical.”

The detective nodded, as Gibbs said, “I’m his team leader. I’m going with him.” As they were racing down the hallway to the ambulance, he called Ducky, asking him to meet him at the hospital. 

Although the drive to the hospital was short and quick, it seemed to take an agonizingly long time as he sat squeezing Tony’s hand and trying to get a response. Gibbs phoned Vance and also Tim during the ride. When they arrived, the EMTs had him stand aside as they rushed Tony in through the emergency entrance. 

“They have a surgeon ready in the O.R.,” said one of the EMTs. “Have a seat in the waiting room and they’ll let you know when there is any news.”

Gibbs located a coffee pot and chugged three cups before returning to the waiting area. Checking his watch often, he hoped Ducky would arrive sooner rather than later. Whatever they were doing with the Prince’s deceased driver Walid, Palmer was going to have to handle it on his own. Gibbs needed Ducky to be with him at the hospital.

Tony was in surgery for hours, with few updates. Ducky had managed to get himself beyond the locked doors to glean added information. For a time, the news seemed rather grim and Gibbs feared Tony would die alone in the operating room. One thing Gibbs was sure of, he was not ready to lose Tony. Much of his time was spent in silent prayer, only sharing a few words with Ducky when it seemed prudent. 

After a few hours, the surgeon had Ducky and Gibbs brought back to Tony’s recovery room. 

“Is he going to make it, Doc?” Gibbs asked pointedly, the worry manifesting itself in his expression and his voice.

The surgeon appeared tired but nodded. “We will be keeping him here a few days for observation. It was a small bullet, but it damaged his left kidney, which we had to remove. There was some damage to the ribs as well, but he will heal.”

Ducky smiled before engaging the surgeon in a long discussion peppered with medical details. Gibbs stepped aside and sat next to Tony, holding his hand and gazing at his face. A nurse was in the room with them, monitoring Tony’s vitals.

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Gibbs called Vance to procure copies of the police investigation reports. Vance had interviewed Ziva himself and had sent over that report as well. Remaining in Tony’s hospital room, Gibbs read through the files and made a few notes of his own. Vance insisted on having an NCIS agent outside the door to Tony’s hospital room at all times. He sat with Tony when he was awake and comforted him while he dealt with grieving the loss of his father.

Gibbs kept in touch with Vance, Tim and Ziva by phone. Just to be on the safe side, Gibbs only allowed Ducky to visit in the hospital. When Tony was feeling better, Gibbs questioned him about what happened. 

“I wish I could remember,” Tony said. “You called and told us to go to the guest business center. I took the stairs, Ziva took the elevator. And that’s really all I remember. Sorry, Boss.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

After a week in the hospital, Tony was allowed to go home with Gibbs. Ducky and Jimmy borrowed a sedan from work to transport Tony home and they made sure he was comfortable. Gibbs insisted they put him upstairs in the bedroom, where he would have easy access to the bathroom.

“He will be utterly bored, you know,” warned Ducky. 

Gibbs placed a stack of books on the nightstand within Tony’s reach. “He can watch television when he’s well enough to walk downstairs.”

Two days later, Tim showed up with a portable television set. “Tony called me.”

Gibbs sent him upstairs while he made lunch. When he took a tray upstairs, he found Tim lying in bed beside Tony as they were watching a movie. Tony scooted over enough for Gibbs to join them, putting Tony in the center. 

“What are you watching?” asked Gibbs. 

“ _Caddyshack_ ,” Tony replied as he reached for one of the sandwiches Gibbs had brought upstairs. “Remember the sniper at the golf course? It was nothing like this.”

After Tim left, Tony asked, “You’ve had a week to look at the evidence. Who do you think is trying to kill me?” When Gibbs didn’t reply, Tony continued, “I know you don’t believe in coincidences. That fake squad car in the alley, the sniper shot at the golf course, and then I get shot at the hotel. Who do you think is behind it? What happened at the hotel? I know Ziva was a witness. What did she say?”

Gibbs reached for the remote and turned it off. “I invited Ziva over to talk. Later. I want to hear it from her.”

“Do you think my father shot me? I know that’s what the report said. He’s not like that though. He’s never handled a gun in his life. He wouldn’t have one.”

“I don’t think he did.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Later in the evening, Gibbs left Tony to rest upstairs, and returned to the living room to review the incident files again while he waited. They’d already had dinner, and Gibbs had helped Tony shower before putting him back into bed and kissing his forehead.

Ziva arrived on time and let herself in. “Hello, Gibbs.”

“Have a seat, Ziver,” he said, taking off his glasses as he looked at her. “I need some answers.”

“About what?” she asked as she took a seat.

Reading from the file on his lap, he noted, “You told the police that Senior pulled out a weapon and shot Tony, and Tony fired back at him.”

“Yes, that is true. They shot each other.”

Gibbs smiled and even chuckled. “I don’t think that’s how it happened at all. Why don’t you tell me the truth this time?”

“I do not understand what you mean.”

“Senior hated guns. He refused to have one in his house and never had shot a weapon in his life. How do you explain that?”

“I do not know. Perhaps he had a change of heart. Maybe he bought it at a pawn shop.”

“The serial number was filed off, but Abby was able to work her magic. The gun was stolen.”

Ziva shifted in the seat. “Maybe he bought it off a friend, someone he knew.”

“It’s all wrong, Ziva. You can tell your lies all you want, but I know it was you who pulled the trigger. That gun was a throwaway that you planted on Senior. You shot them both.”

“Gibbs, how can you say that? Why would you say that? Are you making a joke?”

“No joke. You do realize that I am the lead agent of NCIS’ major crime response team and that we have the highest solve rate in the agency, right? Did you really think I wouldn’t figure this out? The only thing I can’t figure out is why. Are you still holding a grudge about Rivkin?”

“I do not understand what you mean.”

“Bullshit. You understand plenty. You might be good, but you made a lot of mistakes. Let’s start with the fake squad car doused in gasoline. You knew DiNozzo was a police officer before NCIS and that I’d send him down to talk to the other cops. We found the detonator that was rigged to go off with a phone call. McGee told us you were on a phone right before the explosion and it wasn’t your regular cell. It was a cheap flip phone."

“Where is it now? You cannot prove anything.”

“Oh yeah, I’m sure it’s in a landfill somewhere. Let’s talk about the golf course. You were awfully eager to take the evidence to Abby.”

“There was no reason not to.”

“Except that you disappeared for two hours.”

“I stopped for lunch.”

“You need to keep your lies straight. You said you were getting lunch when I tried calling you earlier, right when the shooting happened. Just how many lunches do you take in a day?”

She remained silent, turning away.

“You didn’t turn off your phone. Tim tracked down where you went. You swapped out the bullet with one from a rifle range.” 

Turning back, she smiled. “You are guessing. You cannot prove any of this. So, I went for a drive. It proves nothing.”

“Let’s talk about the Adam’s House. Senior sent those emails that triggered with NSA. You had a spare gun with you. I’m guessing you shot Tony first, then Senior. Then you shot Senior with Tony’s weapon so you could concoct a story where they shot at each other.”

Standing up, Ziva grabbed the files from Gibbs, then walked a few feet before turning and facing him. “I am the witness. I say they shot each other. It is all here in block and white.”

“Black and white? I know Tony better than anyone else. You want to know what your biggest mistake was? Tony is a trained police officer. He was taught to double-tap. If he pulled the trigger, he would have shot twice.”

“Not if he was shot first! And trust me, I would not have missed at such a close range.”

“Not unless you were trying to pin it on Senior, an inexperienced shooter. Not likely someone with such inexperience would hit a major target in one shot. So you aimed for center mass, which is what an untrained, inexperienced shooter would be likely to do. But Tony keeps bouncing back every time no matter what you do.”

Drawing a handgun from her pocket, she promised, “I will not miss again.”

Before she fired her weapon, two shots rang out in rapid succession and Ziva’s gun clattered to the floor as it landed. Blood splattered across the files she’d dropped as she fell. 

Moving across the room quickly, Gibbs kicked her gun away. “Like I said, Tony was trained to double-tap. He does it out of habit, even at the firing range.” Looking up, he saw Tony standing on the staircase, in his robe. “Nice shooting, Skippy.”

“Thanks, Boss. I couldn’t let her shoot you. You did have a weapon handy though, right? In case I fell asleep?”

“In the couch cushions. But I heard you. I can tell the difference between someone walking around, and the house just creaking on its own.”

“Oh my god, call an ambulance,” screamed Ziva as she held onto her bloody right hand. “I’m bleeding.”

Pulling out his cell phone, Gibbs made the call. Then called Vance. “We have all the proof we need. Ziva orchestrated the entire thing as revenge for Tony killing Rivkin. And just for the record, she’s off my team for good.”

_“She still alive?”_

“Yeah, but her right hand may never work again.”

*~*~* ~ *** ~ *~*~* 

Three hours later, after the ambulance, Vance and the police had come and gone, Gibbs took Tony upstairs and put him to bed, gently kissing his cheek, then his lips.

“When did you suspect?” Tony asked. “I must confess, I did not see this coming.”

“I talked to Tim after the squad car blew up. He saw her with a different phone. She pressed in a number and the explosion happened. He thought it was odd that she never raised it to speak.”

“She knew I’d go talk to them.”

“I don’t think she cared if I was collateral damage.”

Rolling onto his side, Tony asked, “And the golf course?”

“I couldn’t get her on the phone. She said she was at a restaurant. I had Tim track her cell phone. She was at the golf course when the shooting happened. And he tracked her to a shooting range after she left with the bullet in the evidence bag.”

“Our little probie. He really has grown into the job. And at the hotel, you knew if I’d shot, I would have done a double-tap. I still don’t know why she shot Senior.”

“He kept hitting on her for one thing. Abby was able to trace her throwaway handgun. She’d bought a cheap weapon and when she shot, she went for center mass and that saved your life.”

“Good thing she didn’t do a double-tap. I couldn’t live without any kidneys at all.”

“Abby analyzed the crime scene. Ziva shot you first. Senior had been facing you, but turned to face her after you went down. She shot you with the throwaway, then used her service weapon to hit him in the heart. That was the fatal shot. Then she grabbed your service weapon from you and shot Senior in the forehead to make it look like he shot you and you shot back. After putting your gun back into your hand, she planted her throwaway near Senior.”

“That’s a lot of trouble just to clear a grudge over Rivkin. Maybe she really did love him.”

“You could have just killed her,” said Gibbs. 

“I didn’t need to.” 

“Whenever her hand heals, she’ll be in prison for the rest of her life.”

Tony grinned. “We can have Tim keep tabs on her. He seems to be good at that.”

Leaning over, Gibbs kissed him again. “And I will keep tabs on you. Vance approved for you to return to field duty once you pass a physical and psych eval.”

“Hey, if Ziva can pass the tests, so can I.”

“Do you regret it, going to Somalia to save her?”

“I thought she deserved a chance. And like Rivkin, her destiny is the direct result of her own actions. That is the reason she will spend the rest of her life in jail. She has no one else to blame but herself.”

“I wonder what she would have done if I’d brought her back from Israel and kept her on my team.”

“Same thing, I’d imagine, just a different timeline. But you made the right choice.”

“In bringing her back?”

“Nah, in choosing to have me in your life.”

“You’re always my first choice, Tony.”

~The end~

10/31/2020

© 2020 by Jacie


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